This invention relates in general to vehicle wheels and in particular to an improved method and apparatus for producing a full face vehicle wheel.
A conventional vehicle wheel is typically of a two-piece construction and includes an inner disc and an outer xe2x80x9cfullxe2x80x9d rim. The disc can be cast, forged, or fabricated from steel, aluminum, or other alloys, and includes an inner annular wheel mounting portion and an outer annular portion. The wheel mounting portion defines an inboard mounting surface and includes a center pilot or hub hole, and a plurality of lug receiving holes formed therethrough for mounting the wheel to an axle of the vehicle. The rim is fabricated from steel, aluminum, or other alloys, and includes an inboard tire bead seat retaining flange, an inboard tire bead seat, an axially extending well, an outboard tire bead seat, and an outboard tire bead seat retaining flange. In some instances, a three-piece wheel construction having a mounting cup secured to the disc is used. In both types of constructions, the outer annular portion of the disc is secured to the rim by welding.
A full face vehicle wheel is distinguished from other types of vehicle wheels by having a one-piece wheel disc construction. In particular, the fall face vehicle wheel includes a xe2x80x9cfall facexe2x80x9d disc and a xe2x80x9cpartialxe2x80x9d rim. The full face wheel disc can be cast, forged, or fabricated from steel, aluminum, or other alloys. The fall face wheel disc includes an inner annular wheel mounting portion and an outer annular portion which defines at least a portion of an outboard tire bead seat retaining flange of the wheel. The wheel mounting portion defines an inboard mounting surface and includes a center pilot or hub hole, and a plurality of lug receiving holes formed therethrough for mounting the wheel to an axle of the vehicle. The partial wheel rim is fabricated from steel, aluminum, or other alloys, and includes an inboard tire bead seat retaining flange, an inboard tire bead seat, an axially extending well, and an outboard tire bead seat. In some instances, the outboard tire bead seat of the wheel rim and the outer annular portion of the wheel disc cooperate to form the outboard tire bead seat retaining flange of the full face vehicle wheel. In both types of constructions, the outboard tire bead seat of the wheel rim is positioned adjacent the outer annular portion of the wheel disc and a weld is applied to secure the wheel rim and the wheel disc together.
In the above vehicle wheel constructions, after the wheel disc and the wheel rim are welded together several finishing operations may be required to produce a wheel having the desired specifications. First, at least one of the inboard and outboard tire bead seats and/or at least one of the inboard and outboard tire bead seat retaining flanges may have to be generally be processed so that the tire bead seats are oriented and located concentric with the wheel axis (commonly referred to as xe2x80x9cradial runoutxe2x80x9d), and the tire bead seat retaining flanges are oriented in a parallel relationship relative to an inboard mounting surface of the wheel disc (commonly-referred to as xe2x80x9clateralxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9caxialxe2x80x9d runoutxe2x80x9d). Following this, the location of center pilot hole, the lug receiving holes, or both may have to be corrected by an appropriate method, such as reboring the center pilot hole and repunching the lug receiving holes, so that an axis of the center pilot hole is oriented in a concentric relationship relative to the wheel axis and the tire bead seats and the axes of the lug receiving holes are oriented parallel to the wheel axis.
This invention relates to a method for producing a full face vehicle wheel wherein at least the inboard tire bead seat is precisely oriented and located relative to an axis of the associated vehicle wheel and includes the steps of: (a) providing a vehicle wheel assembly having a wheel rim and a wheel disc joined together and defining a generally horizontal wheel axis, the wheel rim including an inboard tire bead seat retaining flange, an inboard tire bead seat, a well, and an outboard tire bead seat, the inboar tire bead seat including an inner surface and an outer surface, the onbound tire bead seat retaining flange including an inner surface and an outer surface, the wheel disc including a wheel mounting portion and an outer annular portion, the wheel mounting portion provided with a center pilot aperture and a plurality of lug bolt receiving holes circumferentially spaced around the center pilot aperture, the wheel mounting portion including an inboard mounting surface which defines a vertical wheel axis which is generally perpendicular to the horizontal wheel axis, the outer annular portion of the wheel disc including an inner surface and an outer surface and defining an outboard tire bead seat retaining flange of the vehicle wheel; (b) supporting the vehicle wheel assembly on a vehicle wheel fixturing and press apparatus, the vehicle wheel fixturing and press apparatus including a wheel fixturing member and a wheel press member, the wheel fixturing member adapted to pilot the vehicle wheel assembly on the center pilot hole of the wheel disc, the wheel press member adapted to be piloted relative to the wheel fixturing member, the wheel fixturing member including an outer portion having a predetermined profile which is effective to locate laterally on at least a portion of the outer surface of the outboard tire bead seat retaining flange of the wheel disc, the wheel press member including a stepped outer portion defining a first outer portion and a second outer portion, the first outer portion effective to locate radially on at least a portion of the outer surface of the inboard tire bead seat of the wheel rim, and the second outer portion effective to locate laterally on at least a portion of the outer surface of the inboard tire bead seat retaining flange of the wheel rim; and (c) selectively moving at least one of the wheel fixturing member and the wheel press member toward one another so as to engage and squeeze the inboard tire bead seat radially so as to expand the inboard tire bead seat in the radial direction to round up the radial runout of the inboard tire bead seat and at the same time, to engage and squeeze the inboard and outboard tire bead seat retaining flanges laterally to true up the inboard and outboard tire bead seat retaining flanges to reduce the lateral runout of the inboard and outboard tire bead seat retaining flanges, whereby the inner surface of the inboard tire bead seat is oriented and located at a desired radial distance relative to the horizontal wheel axis and in a generally concentric relationship therewith, the outer surface of the inboard tire bead seat retaining flange is oriented and located at a desired lateral distance relative to the inboard mounting surface of the wheel disc and in a generally parallel relationship therewith, and the inner surface of the outboard tire bead seat retaining flange is oriented and located at a desired lateral distance relative to the inboard mounting surface of the wheel disc and in a generally parallel relationship therewith.